A public celebration was held last week at Lake Junaluska to recognize the work of local conservation groups in obtaining monies to help protect and enhance water quality in the region.

Haywood Waterways Association (HWA) recently received a $677,555 grant from the Clean Water Management Trust Fund (CWMTF) to help reduce erosion and sediment in the Pigeon River Watershed. Most of the money will go to projects along Richland Creek to help protect the Lake Junaluska Watershed. Work will also be done along the Pigeon River near the Canton recreation park to control erosion, manage storm water runoff and stabilize the stream bank.

HWA vice president Dave Dudek praised the partnership that led to the grant. He said the Technical Advisory Committee of HWA worked with many local, state and federal agencies, as well as knowledgeable individuals, to create a successful grant application.

“But this is a beginning, not an end,” Dudek warned. “Some of the traditional ways we do things need to be studied.”

More money will be needed, more education, more monitoring and Best Management Practices that are applicable to mountainside development need to be created, Dudek said.

Jimmy Carr, executive director of the Southeastern Jurisdictional Administrative Council of the United Methodist Church, praised the efforts of HWA and thanked Sen. Dan Robinson (D-Cullowhee) for helping to raise $500,000 for dredging efforts at Lake Junaluska this past winter. Carr said over 133,000 cubic yards of silt were removed from the lake. According to Carr, this translates to 23 million more gallons of water in the lake this summer. But Carr acknowledged that dredging is not the solution.

“It is a long process and it begins with upstream protection. Only work upstream will keep us from having these kinds of problems,” Carr said.

Bill Brooks, a Waynesville resident and a teacher at Tuscola High School, was appointed to the CWMTF board last December. Brooks said Haywood County can’t point fingers if it has a water quality problem.

“Every drop of water that flows through Haywood County originates in Haywood County,” Brooks said.

Brooks also defended CWMTF’s practice of using money to aid in the purchase of property.

“CWMTF has been criticized for buying land to solve problems, but if we hadn’t bought Lake Logan, 10 years from now we would be standing under a tent there,” Brooks said, referring to the sedimentation that might have occurred if land around the lake had been developed instead of preserved.
It’s cheaper to prevent these problems than try and mitigate them, Brooks said.

Sen. Dan Robinson (D-Cullowhee) introduced legislation in the Senate this year to increase CWMTF appropriation from $30 million this year to $40 million next year, to $70 million in fiscal year 2002-2003, and $100 million by fiscal year 2003-2004. However the House budget cuts the CWMTF to $20 million annually.

Robinson told the crowd to never hesitate, “to let people know you are a conservationist.” He said we were obligated to leave the environment in better shape than we found it.

“Nothing is more important in the state budget than to fully fund the $40 million for the CWMTF,” Robinson said.

Having the money is only half the scenario. The programs and practices have to be implemented, officials said.

Brooks said the CWMTF always considers how effectively funds were used in the past when processing new grant applications.

Much of the responsibility for successful implementation of these projects rests with the Haywood Soil and Water Conservation District.

“This is the organization that puts watershed improvement practices on the ground in Haywood County,” said district supervisor Jack Walker.

Haywood Soil and Water is currently in the process of contacting private landowners to enlist their support in reducing sedimentation. They help landowners select Best Management Practices and provide current information on funding plus offer classroom training to Haywood County schools.

Although the comment period has expired for HWA’s public comment period on its Watershed Action Plan, the plan may still be reviewed at the organization’s website: www.haywoodwaterways.org.

 

Home
The Smoky Mountain News